Abstract
Hydrocarbon contamination of water resources is a global issue. These compounds are generated and discharged into the environment in industrial areas from chemical and petrochemical plants, oil refineries, power plants, and so forth. Fuel hydrocarbons, namely, BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylenes) and MTBE (methyl tert-butyl ether), are commonly found in groundwater, posing environmental and health risks to humans and ecosystems. Nature-based technologies represent an alternative solution, providing high efficiency, an environmentally friendly character, simple operation, and cost efficiency, which are characteristics particularly desired by the international petroleum industry. This article discusses the use of the green technology of constructed wetlands to remediate water polluted with hydrocarbons. Although the number of related international experiences and studies is limited, the article presents the latest developments of wetland technology for the removal of MTBE and benzene-BTEX. The discussion includes the overall efficiency of the different wetland types that have been tested and used, the main transformation and removal processes that regulate the fate of BTEX and MTBE in constructed wetlands, and the potential for future investigations.
Highlights
Hydrocarbons are commonly found water contaminants due to their extensive use
Hydrocarbon contamination typically occurs in areas with industrial activity, for example, close to chemical/petrochemical plants, oil refineries, power plants, manufacturing industries, plastic and steel production facilities, and cooling plants
The results indicated that volatilization was promoted by wetland plants [40], though it was not a significant contributor to the measured removals in the gravel-based Constructed wetlands (CWs) beds compared to biodegradation and plant assimilation [41]
Summary
Hydrocarbons are commonly found water contaminants due to their extensive use. They consist of simple compounds of carbon and hydrogen or complex compounds with varying physicochemical properties and are generally classified into aromatic, alicyclic, and aliphatic hydrocarbons. Different physicochemical technologies are applied to remove light hydrocarbons from water, including membranes, porous media adsorption (e.g., on activated carbon and zeolites), advanced oxidation processes (e.g., UV, H2 O2 , and O3 ), chemical oxidation, air stripping, and vapor extraction [3,13,14,15] These technologies are in general efficient; they usually require experienced and skilled personnel, are based on large and sophisticated mechanical equipment, usually demand a high initial investment, have high operation and maintenance costs, and consume large amounts of external energy, which often cannot be covered from the economic and/or technical aspect, in small-scale installations [15]. The goal of this article is to present the current knowledge and technological status of CWs applied for the removal of light hydrocarbons from water, namely, MTBE and benzene-BTEX
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